Rebellion recently took the E3 stage to announce a reboot of the beloved classic Atari game Battlezone, which first hit arcades back in the ’80s. While the original game used an iconic periscope to bring players into the action, we’ll be going a little more high-tech this time around with Sony’s Project Morpheus, the latest virtual reality headset set for release early 2016.
Unlike the Periscope, Project Morpheus sports unwarped output from headset to TV, allowing others in the room to see what the player is seeing. Official screenshots of the project paint the trademark tanks in a battle-ready red set to the backdrop of a fully-realized three-dimensional city. The look is a loving renovation of the classic arcade game, featuring bold geometric shapes dripping with neon and the angular mountains overlooking the battle.
Rebellion CEO Jason Kingsley voices his excitement for the project in the game’s official press release: “When we acquired the Battlezone rights two years ago we almost had to pinch ourselves!” He said, “It really was a dream come true, so it’s our aim to deliver the same revolutionary thrill of the original for a whole new generation. We want to use VR to truly capture the imagination of today’s gamers, just as the original Battlezone captured ours.”
While Battlezone has been confirmed for PC and PlayStation 4 releases, other platforms are apparently in the works and will be confirmed at a later date.
